The shattered Dubliner, 36, completely lost his mental focus and carded three birdies and seven bogeys in a four over par 74 to slip out of contention on five-over.

Less than three weeks after winning back to back Open titles, Harrington was not surprised that he struggled to keep his concentration.

He said: “I just ran out of steam. It was a struggle for me. I did my best to be ready for the week but clearly I'm not. What can I say. The harder I tried the worse it got.

“I haven't got the focus this week. I'm just not with it. Obviously I'm still just having a hangover after winning The Open.

“I'm quite happy with the consequences of winning The Open if this is it. I realize that it takes a lot to come back and try and perform in a Major two weeks after winning one. Maybe they're a bit too close.

“I had a plan in my mind about practicing a couple different things this afternoon. But I think I need to spend 24 hours in bed now."

Harrington started with a birdied from 20 feet at the 10th but bogeyed the 11th and then ended up in a battle just to keep his score respectable.

He had a shank at the par three 13th but saved a miraculous par and then salvaged another par at the 15th, when he raced his 30 foot birdie chance six feet past.

But he couldn’t keep it up for long and while he followed a bogey at the 17th with a birdie at the first, he hit the wall with a bang.

He failed to birdie the par five second from just off the green an then racked up three bogeys in a row from the third to go four over for the championship.

He explained: “I hit it all over the place after the three putt on the third. There was no ability to make my shots or make anything happen.

He saved face with a chip and putt birdie at the driveable sixth but sliced his tee shot close the merchandise tent at the eighth and then hooked his approach to the par-three ninth onto the 10th tee to drop two more shots.

He added: “You know, when you're just not mentally strong it's hard to stop your mind from wandering away and that's what my mind was doing.

“I'm just losing my focus and just can't keep my mind quiet. And that's, as I say, that's a sign of mental fatigue, when you get a very rushed blurring mind. It was just one big struggle. I couldn't get off the course quick enough.”

American JB Holmes grabbed the clubhouse lead on one under with a 68, leaving Harrington six shots off the pace.

And the Dubliner confessed that while he’s not throwing in the towel, it will be a struggle to contend.

He said: “Maybe I'll be better tomorrow. Who knows. If you're holing putts and you get a bit of confidence there, I could go on run. So I am hopeful that things will turn around for the weekend.

“I don't think I'll be there far out of the tournament, with two good scores on the weekend, it might get me back in and we'll just have to wait and see."

Turnberry rough shocks Harrington

Padraig Harrington is expecting a rough ride in next week’s Open at Turnberry.

And that’s why he insists that the €26,000 Ladbrokes.com Irish PGA Championship at The European Club is more important than it’s ever been to his chances of lifting the Claret Jug.

TurnberryIreland’s triple major winner was shocked to find “the thickest rough I have ever seen” on a two-day trip to the Open venue on Sunday and Monday.

But he’ll face something similar at Pat Ruddy’s County Wicklow links and reckons it is still not too late to boost his confidence and sharpen up his misfiring putter before he bids for a hat-trick of Open titles last achieved by Peter Thomson in 1956.

Harrington prepared for more heavy lifting in US PGA

Happy days. Padraig Harrington with the Wanamaker Trophy and the Claret Jug following his victory at Oakland Hills in 2008Padraig Harrington plans to do some heavy lifting this week by hoisting the massive US PGA trophy aloft at Whistling Straits.